Here Where We Belong
by Sabreen
Summary: Usagi is depressed because she never learned something every person's bound to know, but she's too ashamed to ask anybody to teach her. Who teaches her instead? Take a wild guess!
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Notes: **Hey there, people! Guess what! I'm starting upa new project, woohoo! I'm really really hot for this, it's the first normal project since 12/17/2005 when I posted the last chapter of Love So Far Away... Wow... It's been more than four months since I wrote anything! Oh, and can you believe it - it's a year since I started writing! Wow, how many things can happen in a year...

Anyway, you'd _never_ guess where I got the idea for this one. Try it. Giving up? Listen closely - _it came to me in a dream._ No, I am SERIOUS! I was _actually_dreaming them talking about some things you're about to read! Isn't that incredible? I was so shocked when I woke up! But it's a good dream, haha!

Okay, this _might_ slow my epistolary story up, but then again - I wouldn't have finished it that quickly anyway, so it doesn't matter XD.

Okay, I think this would be it...

Enjoy!

Title:Here Where We Belong- Chapter One  
Rating: K+  
Author: Sabreen

_Here Where We Belong - Chapter One_

* * *

It had been the fourth sigh she breathed since she got to the arcade. Mamoru was slowly getting annoyed by her constant pouts and frowns, obvious displease and helplessness. Not just because she'd make all sorts of distracting noises during her time of pitying herself, but also because he wasn't used to seeing her all depressed about something - just didn't suit her. Like an accidentalblack dot in a pastel painting, something that keeps poking your eyeand as much as you try, you can't enjoy the picture because ofthe one detail that just shouldn't be there in any way - that's how he felt. Sighing himself and folding his arms on the counter, he set a careful eye on her.

"Okay, that would be quite enough. Spit it out, what's wrong?" he said in a peerfectly annoyed voice.

She turned to him, her already aggravated eyes turning a darker shade as she looked at him, her piercing eyes seeing right through him.

"What's it to you?" she said gruffly, with a hint of disdain in her voice.

"You've been sighing, frowning and pouting for fifteen minutes now, the longest you've ever been mad over a chocolate milkshake. Something's got to be wrong when you're not in your usual perky mood for that long, ne? I think even I deserve to know what stopped the eternal source of cheeriness," he replied easily, with a smiling tone added to his voice. He was looking at her with clear amusement and without any feeling of commitment on his side - like doing a hobby, or something just for the fun of it.

"Hm," she said darkly, moving her gaze back to the wall in front of her, with various brands of liquer neatly exposed on a shelf.

"Well?" Mamoru raised his eyebrows, turning on his stool to face her directly.

"Well what?" she replied with the same distant, lonesom etone of voice, never moving her stare away from the wall in front of her.

"Are you going to tell me what's bothering you?"

"No."

"Why not?"

She furrowed her brow in wonderment, looking at him as if she was asking him did he really say that.

"Well, why not?" he demanded.

She rolled her eyes and looked at him as if he were stupid.

"Because you're an annoying jerk who can't let a word out of his mouth without it being an insult when he talks to me, duh!"

"Aww, come on, 'Odango Atama' is hardly an insult! Okay, okay!" he said, raising his hands to his defense as soon as he saw her opening her mouth and an angry expression on her face.

A silence took over as he kept watching her closely and as she returned to herstaring at the wall. He said nothing, not feeling the need to say anything as she grew more uncomfortable each second by the silence.

Finally, she sighed exasperatedly.

"I'm not going to tell you because you'd laugh at me and make fun of me, all right?" she said, barely letting the words seep throug her teeth.

"Oh," he nodded, a smile which was winning its way across his lips taking over. The silence once more took over as Mamoru kept looking at her, with an amused grin on his face, and she felt his speculative gaze on her skin. Usagi was visibly under slight pressure as she struggled with herself, her desire to let it out of her system battling a fierce fight with her desire to keep her privacy.

"Ugh, _fine, _whatever!"

Obviously, the first desire won, as Mamoru had expected. He was sitting calmly on his stool, still watching her as if he could see into her.

"Today my teacher said that the eighth grade swimming class begins in a week, we'll be practicing all those elementary stuff, and that it'll last for two weeks." Saying it, she bowed her head now looking at her milkshake with a bit disoriented stare.

"Yeah, I had that too. And?" She turned to look at him with a confused expression.

"And what? That's it."

"That's it?" he asked, raising his eyebrows. "So what's the problem then? You've got your period on one of those weeks? You know, tampons are as good in water as in usual conditions."

Usagi choked on her milkshake and turned deep red, flashing him an angry-slash-embarrassed stare.

"No, I am not having... " she blushed again, "on one of those weeks, and except that, I'm a girl so I know more about those things than you ever will," she said briskly, feeling a tad superior over him in at least one thing. He just shrugged and sipped his coffee.

"Fine. So, _wha t_is the problem then?"

She blushed again and bowed her head, looking at her lap, mumbling something inaudible.

"What did you say?" Mamoru unconsciously leaned forward a bit to hear her better.

"I can't swim, all right?" she whispered fiercely and defiantly, looking at him as if she was trying to see if he'd dare to say anything rude in the slightest.

However, he reacted differently than she'd expected him to react. She thought he'd start laughing his head off and point at her, making fun of her and putting her down in many ways, but he didn't. He was surprised nontheless, his lips agape and his eyebrows high, before he put them down and leaned back to a normal position, just letting out a small breath of surprise and slight disbelief.

"Huh, whaddya know. How come?" he said, again focusing his gaze on her.

Usagi, a bit shocked to see him react like that, fully understood the questions a few seconds after it was asked, as the initial shock wore off. Finally, she shrugged.

"Well, we never went to the seaside when I was a kid because of my dad's job, he was needed in the summer. We never went to any pools or lakes either, so I had no chance to learn how to swim."

Mamoru nodded absently while looking away at some point on the wall.

"I did go to a spa once," she said, looking at him. Mamoru just smiled, shaking his head.

"Great."

But then, something occured in his mind and looked at her, confused.

"But isn't there a swimming class in third grade?"

She nodded sheepishly. He shook his head, looking at her with a still confused interrogative expression on his face, and his brow furrowed.

"And?" he added.

"I got away from them," she shugged. "Went into the park instead."

"Why would you want to do something like that?" he asked her, suddenly remembering his now luke-warm coffee and taking a sip.

"I was afraid of water which I couldn't stand in..."she whispered a bit fearfully. "Still am, actually..."

"Oh, I see."

Everything now clear, he turned to the counter and continued to drink his coffee before it got too cool.

"So that's why you're all bummed out."

She nodded.

"Why don't you ask somebody to teach you then?" he asked her, as their gazes met.

"Who? Mom thinks I already know. Dad is way too busy. I can't ask my _brother_ to teach me. I'd feel way too uncomfortable with my friends, plus Rei would laugh at me..." she sighed, her voice again becoming distant and sad as it was at the beginning of their conversation.

"I just don't know what to do..."

Mamoru drank up his cup of coffee, and put it on the counter, as calm and coldblooded as ever.

"I'll teach you," he said in that same calm tone. "If you ask me nicely, that is," he added, a childishly wicked gleam in his eyes.

"Hmph!" she snorted, folding her arms on her chest. "Not in a million years!" Mamoru raised his eyebrows in wonder.

"Oh? And why is that so?"

"Because you'd laugh at me and make fun of me every step of the way and probably put me down in front of the whole pool!" Mamoru laughed slightly, thinking that it _is_ a typical reaction, considering all the experiences she'd had with him by then and that it was really nothing strange.

"Okay, I understand why you said that." he said, still chuckling. "But what if I promised I wouldn't do anything to humiliate you or put you down?"

"I still wouldn't!" The defiant expression never left her face.

"Why not this time?"

"Because you'd break the promise!"

Mamoru stared at her for a while, with a beginning of a smile on his face, before he slightly shook his head and put the smile away, which was strange to her. She thought he'd laugh at her mockingly again, covering the breakdown of his plans, but instead, he didn't even smile, and had a serious face all the time while replying to her,

"I would not break my promise."

She would never believe it if it wasn't for the utterly serious and meaningful expression on his face. He wasn't choking back laughter or even a smile; he stared at her carefully as if it was really important for her to understand it. But she still thought she knew him better than that, although his eyes rocked that certainty thoroughly.

"Yes, you would." She looked at him with the same amount of sureness and seriousness.

"I swear I wouldn't. I'm a man of my words." His composure slightly relaxed. "Go ask Motoki if you don't believe me."

Usagi squinted as she was looking at him, as if she was evaluating him. She turned to look at the Crown café kitchen door and then again at Mamoru, before standing up and treading her way to the door. Just then, Motoki was emerging from the kitchen, lightening up as he saw Usagi.

"Hey, Usagi-chan!" he said cheerily.

"Motoki-san, is Mamoru a man of his words?" she asked seriously, not beating around the bush. Motoki was taken by surprise a bit, but he recovered quickly.

"Oh, yes. Oh, yes, he is! I'd give you 100 000 yen if you were able to find a man more honest than him," he said, leaving Usagi in wonder.

"How can you tell?" she asked, a small pout on her lips.

"Well, we had a bet on our prom dance. We had nothing better to do so we bet that the most popular girl in our class will fall and hurt herself. She was wering these really, really high and thin heels, and Mamoru was absolutely positive she'd fall in some occasion. I said she wouldn't just so we could have a contradiction. I was really bored."

"And?" Usagi was listening closely.

"Well, the girl seemed to be a real master in walking in those high heels, so it seemed. She didn't even trip. So Mamoru lost. The loser was supposed to drink two full cups of spiked punch with all sorts of things in it -including other liquer, all sorts of snacks, chocolate, strawberries and whatnot. Not only that it _looked_ gross, it seemed really, _really _unhealthy, and you know what a health freak Mamoru is."

"And?" Usagi opened her eyes wide.

"And... he drank it. He knew he'd probably end up in a hospital, but he drank it all up."

"Really..."

"Yeah."

"So then what happened?"

"So he did end up in a hospital. Blood poisoning, and they had to pump his stomach." Motoki shivered as he remembered certrain details of the happening which weren't so nice...

"He stayed in the hospital for a week, had to watch his diet for a month, but he still did it. So, I think you can say he's a man of his word, definitely."

"Oh." She looked back at Mamoru, who held his cup up to her as if he was giving a toast, a smile on his lips.

"Uh, Usagi-chan, why did you ask such a ques..."

But she was already gone.

"And?" he asked, amused, as she sat on her stool. She sighed and shrugged.

"Fine, I believe you. You wouldn't break your promise."

He smiled even wider and shrugged.

"Told ya so."

"Fine, then, I guess you can teach me how to swim." Usagi said, giving up, and cheering up. Why should she stay gloomy if she had nothing to worry about anymore?

"Ho ho, you think it's going to be that easy? No, no, you'll have to ask me nicely, Odango!" Her face again turned angry and she flashed him a nasty look.

"Don't look at me like that! It's not that you have much choice, now do you? I mean, there's always a choice, but I doubt that embarrassing yourself in front of the whole class is in your interest, ne?" She was looking at him angrily like that for a few more seconds as she was aobviously in thought. He had just flared her with his blackmailing so she had half a mind to give up, but then again, he won't humiliate or tease her, so how bad can it be?

Finally, the angry expression relaxed and now she was just pouting.

"Fine then." she spat. "Will you please teach me how to swim. Please, please with sugar on top," she said evenly, with no emotion. He just grinned evilly, pretending to be considering her question.

"All right, I guess... but under one condition."

"What is it?"

"That I get a reward of my desire at the end."

Usagi eyed him speculatively. "Just one?" He nodded.

"Just one."

"What will it be?"

He shrugged. "I don't know, but I'll think of something."

Usagi thought a bit. Well, even if he wanted to call her Odango Atama for the rest of her life, she'd just avoid him. What could he think of that could be so terrible?

"Fine. You have a deal. But you must promise that you won't humiliate me, insult me, call me Odango Atama or do or say anything I wouldn't like, understood?" She held a firm gaze on him, just to be sure.

Mamoru smiled, and raised his right hand like he was in court.

"I promise I won't humiliate you, insult you, call you Odango Atama or do or say anything you wouldn't like." She nodded.

"Good. See ya at four o'clock p.m. in front of the Oyogu No Utsukushisa pool building, okay?"

"Tomorrow?"

"Yeah, there's only a week left so I think we ought to hurry."

"Okay. See ya then."

Taking a deep breath and not believing what happened that very day, Usagi got up and left the arcade.

* * *

End of Chapter One

Well - what do you think? Well, it's justthe beginning, I need some time to warm up and stuff. Well, see ya later!

Sabreen


	2. Chapter Two

**Author's Notes: **All right, I spent an eternity writing this, I wanted to finish it as soon as possible. And, here it is! –yawn- Well I'm to tired to ramble (lucky you XD) so, just…

Enjoy!

Title: Here Where We Belong – Chapter Two  
Rating: K+  
Author: Sabreen

_Here Where We Belong – Chapter Two

* * *

_

_'Why do I have a feeling that this was a bad idea?' _

The pool building was in sight, with its front terrace on which there were some tables and chairs - obviously a caféA few people were leisurely drinking coffee, enjoying their afternoon as the afternoon sun showed slight, almost unnoticeable traces of losing strength. It still shone brightly – even though small children, playing freely in the park, could sense that after a few more sand sculptures and their turns on the swing, it will gradually color the city with gentle orange shading, bearing a feeling of the end of the day.

She could see him, in his relaxed, cold-blooded sitting position and far away in his thoughts as he was looking at the fountain in front of the pool building, taking a random sip of his coffee. The sight stirred her soul, making her heart beat faster and her thoughts dizzy. She was in a lack of what to do – she really did want to do this, as the thought of him being near, directing all his attention to her was exciting and so desirable, but then again – her instinct was rather unsure, moved by the previous experience with him. Would he really keep his promise? Would he be _nice_ for a change?

And before she could change her mind and turn around, she hurried towards the coffee shop, her eyes glued to the ground so he wouldn't know she had seen him. When she went up the few stairs that led to the terrace, she looked up at him, sheepishly approaching him as he smiled in his own mockingly amused way.

"You're late," he stated. Usagi, still in her thoughts, just murmured an apology, her mind set on a different course.

"Well, not that I wasn't expecting it or anything, but a person would think that you wouldn't be late for something that is particularly in your interest, ne?" He smiled, tossing a few coins on the table for his coffee, and getting up to lead the way to the entrance.

Usagi just followed, still staring at the ground, her uneasiness growing by the seconds. Mamoru went to pay for their entrance, as Usagi sat on one of the chairs by the wall, waiting for him to finish. He did, rather quickly and moved slowly towards Usagi to sit next to her. It took a few moments until she realized it was him.

"Well," she said, furrowing her brow, "Are we going inside or not?" She looked at him, a bit confused. Mamoru leaned against his chair, folding his arms on his chest.

"No." He shook his head. Usagi blinked a few times.

"Why not?"

"We're not going inside until you say what's your problem."

"What's my problem?" Usagi raised an eyebrow. Mamoru nodded, still holding his piercing gaze on her.

"Why are you so distant?" he asked her in a tender, confused voice, slightly shaking his head and squinting his eyes in the process.

Usagi turned her gaze away and looked at her nervous fingers fiddling in her lap. She bit the inside of her cheek, thinking about what she should say, as her heart was beating faster.

But Mamoru was faster, sighing with a sad smile.

"I knew this would happen," he shook his head, before taking a deep breath.

"Listen," he started. "We can't go anywhere if you keep feeling like this. I know that all I did was tease you and make fun of you, and I'm aware that this is way strange to you, but please let that go now, because you'd just feel uncomfortable with me and we'd get absolutely nowhere with this."

Usagi managed to look at him. "And what, this isn't strange for you too?"

"Well, of course it is," he replied in a lowered tone of voice. "But I've succeeded to get over it… To a certain extent, at least…" Usagi looked at her hands again.

"But I can't get over it completely without your help, you know," he added.

"It feels like…" Usagi managed to look up at the opposite wall, and sighed.

"I don't know… Weird, I guess." Mamoru nodded, a bit distant in his thoughts.

"Say what," he said, looking at her with a look of determination in his eyes. As she turned to him, he started to talk.

"Let's start anew," he said, happy with his idea, as he stood up and encouraged her to stand up too.

"Come on!" he said, as she was a bit reluctant. Finally she stood up, and he got exactly in front of her, with a childishly devilish smile. He cleared his throat.

"Hello, nice to meet you. I'm Chiba Mamoru." Saying that, he bowed slightly, with that smile still resting on his lips. That was too much for Usagi's barrier of nervousness to hold, so a tiny giggle erupted from her lips. He raised an eyebrow, waiting for her to do the same thing.

Giggling some more, she shrugged. "Whatever," she whispered with an amused grin, and also bowed.

"Nice to meet you too, I'm Tsukino Usagi." On that note, Mamoru's grin became wider, and he took one of her small, gentle hands, kissing the back of it.

"Enchanté, belle mademoiselle," he whispered. He heard her giggle, but didn't see the blush nor feel the hotness on her cheeks, or the sudden unexpected flutter of her heart.

Slipping her hand back from his hold, she went towards the entrance to the room of the pool changing cabins, leisurely remarking,

"Don't think French will make up for all the times you've called me Odango Atama!"

Laughing merrily, he went after her.

* * *

"What _is_ it with girls and clothes?" Mamoru grumbled silently, leaning against the door of Usagi's changing cabin, his arms folded impatiently on his chest. "Oh, come on, it can't _possibly_ take you that long to change!" he yelled, already annoyed. 

"Oh, shut up! I'm coming in a second!" Mamoru rolled his eyes and sighed.

"Yeah right," he murmured.

"I heard that!"

At this he couldn't resist smiling, just a bit.

Finally, after a few more moments of impatient grumbles and shifting from one leg to another, finally the lock of the door was heard, as Usagi was fiddling with it… And kept fiddling with it.

"Ugh, crap!" she swore silently as all her attempts to unlock the door were in vain.

"It unlocks on the right," he said with a perfectly acted annoyance, not to mention that he had exactly the same problem when he was getting out.

"Oh." He could _feel_ her blush on the other side, and it made him nothing but warm with her absolute cuteness.

"Why do they have to make such locks anyway, they just confuse people…" she grumbled as she was finally succeeding in unlocking the door.

After he heard the door close again, he looked away from a warning sign on the door of his cabin (it was right beside Usagi's) he was reading, and in the same time Usagi turned around after locking the door.

Azure clashed with midnight, resulting with both pairs of eyes to widen and both cheeks to blush, before the afore mentioned pairs of eyes went lower… and lower…

"Oookaay, let's go now," Mamoru said, sounding slightly panicky, as he turned away quickly and scurried off to the pool. Usagi followed him, blushing profusely until she decided just to keep her eyes on the tiled floor.

They went through the door that led to the pool and found themselves in a large hall, smelling sharply of chlorine, with a large pool filled with sky-blue, transparent depth, the tranquility interrupted by happy, screaming children and swimming adults; all in the middle. The pool and the space around the pool were parted from the stands, which surrounded them completely, by a railing. There was a place in the railing where it broke, leaving a gap with a door which Mamoru and Usagi were just coming through.

"Wow," Usagi commented, watching and observing the large hall and everything that was in it, deeply affected and enchanted by the whole intimidating size of the hall, "This is… _big_…"

As she was taking her sweet time looking at the wonders of the swimming pool and everything that went with it, Mamoru secretly stole a long, yearning glance at her… And swallowed hard. All that he was able to look before was her head, slender neck, a humble neckline that allowed a small glimpse into the gentle, fair skin of her chest and stopped before anything more was seen, and her legs from the knees below; all hidden by her cute uniform. Not that he was looking, of course. Since that uniform of hers hid everything worth seeing, he didn't even take the trouble of pursuing to see more, and except that – he wasn't that kind of a guy, really. The things he concentrated on more were her face and her hair, as long as the looks go, at least. Subconsciously, she was a very young girl that barely got into puberty to him.

But now…

Her hair was the same as it always had been, the silkiness of it falling gently down her back in two ponytails that reached her knees. But, for once, her hair was_ not_ the thing he was looking at…

She wore a pastel pink one-piece swimsuit, with very thin straps that crossed two times on her back, leaving a deep cut, and revealing all of the gentle, soft, glowing skin of her back, enough to leave any man drooling – but particularly one. The swimsuit covered her stomach and chest though – but still left quite a desirable décolletage, which demanded a certain amount of will not to stare at. He had never even noticed how beautiful she was – well, he did, but didn't in the physical sense. He had never had the chance to see her like this, and only then did he notice how absolutely gorgeous her body was. Her tender face, with the most beautiful eyes he had ever seen, continuing with her long, graceful neck which was tickled by a few strands of hair that were too short to get into the odango buns on the back of it; then her small yet elegant shoulders with two gentle, slender arms at each side of her body, finishing with two hands that were so soft and tender that everything they held seemed not wanting to be put down; then her small, fair chest that slowly grew into firm and gracious bust, now half covered with her adorable, hiding, yet so revealing swimsuit; her round hips which only enhanced her beauty; her small, flat stomach; and her legs, short, but beautifully shaped and graceful.

The more he looked at her, the more his stomach seemed to gain on weight, causing his heart to thump faster and faster. She really was extraordinarily beautiful...

"What is it?" he suddenly heard her say, blushing profusely, as she turned around to face him and noticed the odd look he had on her. He just slowly moved his gaze up from her stomach, shamelessly staring at everything on his way up, until he reached her eyes and kept staring in them, as he smiled secretly, just a bit, without showing a slight trace of weakness.

"Nothing," he said after a few moments, walking toward her, just to pass her by and move to the pool. She gulped and closed her eyes, taking a deep breath to calm herself, before she turned around and moved to the pool herself.

Mamoru was carefully dipping a foot into the water, before he took it out and squatted next to the pool, dipping his hands into it and splashing himself a bit.

"What are you doing?" Usagi asked him curiously as she stood next to him; her hands on her back, and bowed slightly.

"Splashing myself so I would get used to the temperature of the water," he replied nonchalantly. " I think you should do the same, we wouldn't want to listen to you screaming when you get in," he added as he grinned, splashing her playfully.

"Oh!" Usagi let out a short gasp of surprise, before grinning and rolling her eyes. Mamoru stood up as he finished with his splashing and ran his hand through his hair, taking a deep breath.

"Okay, now what do we do?" he mumbled to himself, looking at the water unseeingly as he silently formed a plan.

Usagi, still standing quietly next to him, stealthily moved her gaze to him, stealing random glances at him, and blushing accordingly. His hands were on his hips and he was biting the inside of his cheek, thinking about the day's activities.

In those not so rare moments when they were at each other's throats, she took little time to observe his looks. All that she had caught a glimpse of were his perfect face with his midnight blue eyes and his ebony hair. But nonetheless, there were times when he didn't know he was being watched, and in those times she secretly studied him. Because of those times, she was already familiar with the silky, thick locks of his shiny, ebony-black hair, or his deep eyes, thin lips, or perfect cheekbones that made his face so adorable, matching perfectly with his always-serious eyes and proud forehead. All that she already knew by heart, and how she was confused upon seeing him in this half-naked state! He obviously didn't work on his muscles the way other men do, just to show them off, which was evident in the loss of certain muscles' outlines. Everything was rather vague – his arms, his legs, his chest, his back… But he was built well, giving out a certain unique sense of macho masculinity mixed with beauty and elegance. His arms weren't stuffed with muscles, nor were they skinny; they were… no other word but normal can describe them. The same thing was with his legs. He wore a pair of dark blue swimming boxers that came approximately to the middle of his thighs, starting from about two inches from his navel.

She blushed hard when she took a quick glance at his chest, vaguely outlined like everything else, but looking as comfy and soft as her favourite pillow, just like his stomach. She shook her head and closed her eyes tight before she got in too deep. She couldn't not notice the stares other young women and girls held on him; and on that note she felt the tiniest bite of jealousy

"Okay then," he said happily, suddenly snapping out of his reverie. "Let's go!" he added, looking at her. She frowned in confusion.

"Let's go where?" she asked.

"Why, in the water, of course!" he said, before sitting on the edge of the pool and slipping ever so graciously into the water. Usagi stood there, her eyes wide, wondering if she heard him right.

"W-what?" she muttered when he surfaced.

After that happened, for a short moment she forgot what she wanted to say and what her point was. All she could concentrate on in that split second was him and his wet face, as he slicked his wet hair down with his hand

'_Oh my…' _she thought, as he looked so attractive in that very moment that her heart fluttered.

But she snapped quickly out of it, remembering again what her problem was.

"What?" he asked. "Come on, what are you waiting for?" Usagi's eyes widened in shock.

"We haven't got all day, you know!" he added. Usagi gasped, frowning in horror.

"Y-you don't mean… that I g-get in, d-do you?" she said, shocked. Mamoru raised an eyebrow.

"Er… Well, that _was_ the plan, remember?" Usagi looked helplessly into the water.

"I'm supposed to teach you to swim, and I _kinda _need you to actually get in the swimming area to do that." Mamoru swam to the edge of the pool and folded his arms on it, looking up at her. Her eyes moved desperately around the hall.

"But… But… This is… _deep!_" She whined. "_Very deep!"_ she emphasized. "It says '200 cm' here!" she finally cried. Mamoru pushed himself off the edge and stayed in a lying position about three feet from it.

"Yeah, and?" he asked, confused.

"What do you mean 'yeah, and'?" Usagi went ballistic.

"Aah, so you're afraid of deep water, aren't you?" he said, nodding in understanding. Usagi mouthed different words, trying to form all sorts of different expressions to describe the awful understatement of the word 'afraid'. After she managed nothing, she succeeded only in whispering a broken "Horrified…"

"Oh, well," he sighed, raising his eyebrows in helplessness, "This complicates things a bit..."

"You don't say," Usagi said, managing to steal a frightened glance into the water below her.

"Okay, here's what we're going to do," Mamoru said after a moment of thinking, "You go in-"

"What! Didn't you just hear what I said!" she interrupted. Mamoru rolled his eyes.

"Will you let me finish, please?" He said, visibly annoyed, raising his eyebrows. She bowed her head a bit, still looking at him.

"Thank you," he said in the same tone of voice, and continued in a completely other manner. "Now, as I said, you go in." As he was speaking, her face again became helpless and frightened as she looked at the depth of the pool. "Look, there's nothing to be afraid of, there is a little wall right next to the side of the pool that is high enough for you to be able to stand on with your chin above the water." Usagi frowned and leaned in just a bit to see if what he was saying was true.

"It's too deep to see it, but I am telling the truth," he said in a calmer, gentler manner. "Now, are you coming or not?" He held a firm gaze on her, not so strict, but rather a careful, attentive one.

She slowly looked up from the bottom of the pool to his eyes, watching them for a moment. "That wall is definitely there?" she asked sheepishly. He said nothing, but just nodded, still holding that piercing gaze on her. She sighed and straightened up.

"Well, then… Okay… I guess…" Mamoru let a tiny winning grin cross his lips. "But can I use the latter rather than just slip in?" Mamoru shrugged.

"Sure." On that note, she tapped quickly a few feet to the metal latter, which Mamoru swam his way to.

Slowly and carefully she started going down the latter, one rung at a time. Finally, she submerged her left foot to put it o a rung that was under the surface.

"Well, the water isn't even that cold!" she remarked cheerily, not managing to cover the shivering in her voice, as she ever so slowly descended more and more.

"Er… Mamoru-san?" she asked suddenly, a small ounce of panic evident in her voice.

"Yeah?" he replied, worried a bit about what the problem was all of a sudden.

"Uh, I can't feel that wall you were talking about…" Mamoru frowned and looked at her feet through the surface.

"Well, it's a little bit deeper from the place you're standing on. You better go one more rung down."

"But this is the last one!"

"Oh, well, just go down with your foot until you feel it."

"Uh... okay…"

Mamoru watched as she moved her foot lower and lower, before pulling it up on the rung again quickly as lightning.

"I can't! It's too deep!" she cried hopelessly.

"No, it's not, you just need to stretch it a bit farther."

"But, if I do, I'm afraid I'll lose control and slip on the tiles! I can't!" she whimpered again, gripping the latter tighter. Mamoru sighed, but suddenly an idea crossed his mind. He swam to her and grabbed the latter on the side, right below Usagi's hands.

"Okay then, I'll make sure that doesn't happen," he all but whispered on her ear. Her heart suddenly started pumping faster as soon as she felt his scent, and felt the places he accidentally happened to touch her.

"But even if you're here, if I slip, I'll still fall in the water and it will get in my chest and I'll suffocate!" she blurted out, her voice full of panic and nervousness. Mamoru laughed, and she felt something moving in her stomach as she felt his breath on her bare skin.

"Come on, you wouldn't suffocate! But all right then," he said, slipping his right hand around her slim waist, "We'll make double an effort to secure you," he added with a certain calculated smile on his lips.

As she felt his strong yet slender arm slide its way around her waist, she felt her stomach churn like nothing else. Her breath became shallow and her eyes wide as she was pressed against his chest and stomach, surrounded by the divinity of his scent from every side. The fact that he was wet only enhanced the feeling, as the places their bodies were leaning against each other warmed up very quickly. Gulping, she eased her firm grip on the latter and slowly, even more slowly than it would usually take her to do it (Wondering why?) started to search the little wall with her foot again.

In the meantime, Mamoru was mutely paying attention to what she was doing, because he was rather stunned and dizzy. Her waist was so small, soft and fragile and yet elastic and perfect to touch. The scent of her bare skin was the thing that made his heart quicken its pace, its silkiness and softness arousing his senses and making him take a deep breath to steady himself…

How many times had he been this close to a woman before?

Countless.

How many of those times did he feel something as exquisite as this?

Never.

Beside their rushing emotions, they both heard Usagi say something through a distant haze and it took them both a moment to realize what she had said.

"Okay, I think I got it," she whispered as her foot finally felt the wall. After he understood her statement, he nodded vaguely.

"Okay…" He gulped and shook his head a tiny bit.

"Okay," he repeated, "Now try to get both of your soles on it."

"Hold me!"

"I will," he smiled.

As she turned her face a bit to see his, she smiled back warmly.

He tightened his grip around her slender waist, and they both felt their hearts skip a beat after that action. Then they concentrated on what they were doing, resulting with Usagi successfully stepping onto the little wall.

On the disappointment of both of them, he then started to let go of her waist. His arm had nothing to do there anymore, they both realized it, but it felt so good…

Mamoru then stepped on the wall himself, next to her. "I think it's best that you get used to this depth a bit before we proceed, okay?"

She nodded. "Okay."

A few minutes of mindless small talk passed, as the words simply flowed, making sentences one after another, some causing a small blush, some a smile, and some a shrug; all together creating a mindless conversation neither of them ever imagined could be so pleasant.

"Okay, I think you got pretty used to this by now. Let's move on, I'll push myself a little further away from the edge and you come to me, okay?" Usagi's eyes widened in fear once again.

"No!" she said, frightfully looking at the water and Mamoru by turns.

"Don't you think you accustomed to deep water by now?" Mamoru asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Doesn't matter! I'm not going one step away from the edge!" she cried with a shaky voice. Mamoru sighed, rolling his eyes.

"You're not going to drown, I'm here, remember?"

"I am _not_ going into the deep water!"

"Oh, come _on_, Usagi!" Mamoru said, annoyance clear in both his face and voice.

"No!" she yelled with equal heat.

"Usagi, how am I supposed to teach you anything if you keep holding onto that damn wall!" Mamoru tried to be reasonable as always, but his anger persistently slowed that down.

"Well, how do you expect from me to do something I don't want to do!" she yelled back. Mamoru growled angrily, running his hand through his hair and rolling his eyes.

"God, Usagi, you're so damn stubborn!" he yelled, vehemently hitting the surface with his fist causing the water to splash.

Usagi just gasped, frowning at him.

"You know, I'm not at all surprised you suck so much in school," he yelled with no mercy, "It's because you're too _stupid_ to realize that you've actually got to _do_ something to learn things!" he continued on shouting in his lost anger.

On those words, Usagi felt a hot, painful sting in her heart and her eyes immediately filled with tears, and she tried to stop herself because she knew it would just give him more to insult her about.

"I can't believe you!" she yelled through her tears, which were just building up more and more in her crystal blue eyes. "I can't believe I accepted this! I knew it!" She sniffed angrily. "I felt that you'd use this just to insult me more, that you being a friend can't be real! But you fooled me, and you _actually _made me believe through this day that you can be nice and good to me and funny and whatnot… and that we could… we could… Ugh!" She growled, wiping her tears, deeply aggravated, and made her way as fast as she could to the latter and climbed up, quick as lightning. On her way out, she turned to him.

"But the truth is: you're a _jerk_, Mamoru! And you'll never be anything _but_ a jerk and an idiot! Ugh, I HATE YOU!" and she turned again and stormed away, disappearing through the door that led to the changing cabins room.

Mamoru sighed dejectedly, running his hand through his hair.

* * *

"_If only he could come through that door, looking for me!"_

"_I do not want him to come in right now, he's stupid and obnoxious and arrogant! I don't need that idiot in my life at all!"_

"_Oh, come on, he's a rich, utterly handsome college student, he's probably walking out the front door right now. Like he could care less what will happen to a stupid clumsy junior high girl! And besides, he would doubtfully make the trouble to find me all the way here."_

"_But he's so nice, with that gorgeous smile of his and that incredibly intoxicating scent…"_

"_Oh, please, a heartless jerkwad who has no idea about girls' emotions!"_

"_Well, no matter what he is, I wouldn't interest him even if he held me like he was earlier every day of the rest of his life! Not to mention he'd absolutely despise the idea, I am just a stupid little girl for him."_

"_And his warmth is the most beautiful and comfortable thing in the world! Oh, how wonderful it would be if he went searching for me…"_

"…_so I could fall for his eyes and get hurt again? No way, Jose! The farther away that guy is from me, the better!"_

"_Well, I am way too out of his league, so it's better if I just pack up and be off and stop both thinking about him or hoping anything will happen!"_

In her clouded thoughts that had been consuming her, she scarcely noticed the children running around or heard their screams, laughter, cries and splashes. In her anger and helplessness, thinking about Mamoru and his words, she ran as far as she could, and arrived to an entertainment area for children, where there was everything – from small puddles to knee-high pools, and from big plastic boats to big plastic water slides. She walked, tripping on many kids in the process, to on of the small pools filled with happy kids. She sat on the edge of it and put her feet in the warm water, thinking about everything that happened ever since, not even noticing a big figure that sat next to her.

"I've been looking all over for you," Mamoru said in a broken, hoarse voice, barely above whisper.

She was suddenly aware of his presence, but kept still, in the same position as ever, not saying a word.

"You wouldn't believe how big a building can be when you're looking for someone…" Mamoru said, desperately trying to ease the coldness.

"I thought you already went home," he said, looking at her profile; and she felt it.

"Why didn't you?" he asked her, now whispering and moving his face closer to hers just for a tiny bit.

But really, why didn't she?

Asking herself that question, just one answer came up on her mind, and as much as she tried she couldn't get another one; although it _was_ so incredibly stupid and she knew she was being so gullible and naïve and idiotic… But even with the answer confessed to herself, she couldn't just blurt out 'because I wanted you to follow me here to show that you care because I really care that you care'.

So she kept silent, still watching her feet in the shallow little pool. Mamoru sighed mournfully, closing his eyes for a bit. Well, he knew that he couldn't get off with it that easy.

"Nee, let's go out, I want to tell you something, and this is hardly the ambient for that… Is that okay?" She still didn't react. So he slowly covered her hand with his own; and as she didn't react, he took it gently and pulled her up with him, leading their way out.

When they were out of the children entertainment section, in an empty corridor, Mamoru finally let go of her hand and faced her. He slumped his shoulders and sighed, considering his options.

"Look, Usagi-chan… I… I'm really sorry..." His throat suddenly dried up and he lost the words to convey his point.

"It's just that… You know, I've rarely been in this kind of a situation so I'm a little bit lost on what to do sometimes…" She still didn't buzz. "The things I said to you were awful, I'm fully aware of it and I want you to know that I'm sorry for saying them. You… You're not stupid. Nor do I think you are. And I don't think of you as less of a person just because your grades are… Well, as they are, and I just got carried away. I'm sorry, Usagi-chan." She still kept staring at the floor somewhere beside him, obviously listening, but not affected by it in any way what hurt Mamoru quite a bit and made it more difficult for him – he was spilling his heart and soul for her and she did nothing about it! The only choice left was to try again… and again… and again.

"Usagi-chan, I know that I can't take back what I said, and I usually don't get so impatient so quickly but I was already a mess until all those things you did to me a bit before and-"

"What?" she suddenly raised her head, and stared in his eyes; her own blue depths open wide.

He blinked a couple of times, happy that she suddenly came to life and confused by her behaviour. It was obviously visible as she repeated her thought.

"What did you say?" she asked in that same hoarse half-whisper, taken by such unbelievable surprise.

"Uh... Erm, that I was a mess because of the things you did to me earlier before and that-"

"Things… That I… Did to you?" she whispered. Finally realizing what it was all about, Mamoru let a little tired grin cross his face.

"Yes, Odango, things that you did to me. Things that you do to me. Things nobody's ever done to me before…" Usagi bowed her head, as surprised as before.

"_Wow…so he… does care about me?" _

Mamoru suddenly felt his throat dry up. _What the hell_ did he just do? Admit such a thing to her? Is he _nuts?_

Suddenly, Mamoru laughed out loud, shaking his head and getting Usagi's attention.

"Oh well, what _am_ I saying? I guess I'm just not myself today!" he said cheerily. Usagi frowned in confusion. But, before she could say anything, he took her hands in his and looked directly in her eyes. He had to use the chance while he still had one…

"But please, Usagi, know that I'm sorry. _Really_ sorry for everything bad I said about you. I promised I wouldn't do such a thing, and I intend to keep that promise. Would you give me a second chance, considering that we started anew when we got here?" He smiled and pouted the puppy dog style, gripping her hands tighter.

"I really believed you. Everything you said, everything you did showed that you were actually a nice guy, under all that insulting and all. And when you said all that, the whole world where you were the hero crashed into nothing." She was looking at him calmly, as if she was accusing him of something and wants to see how will he defend himself.

"I really am sorry," he whispered seriously, feeling that there's nothing more he could say. She sighed and shrugged.

"Well maybe I am too stubborn." She sighed.

"But why?" she asked skeptically, out of the blue. "Why do you even care? You're a handsome, rich college guy, what do you care what some junior high girl thinks of you?" She eyed him speculatively.

Mamoru closed his open mouth, gazing at her for a while.

"I can't answer that yet."

His words were sincere and sounded a bit sad and melancholic, as if he was really sorry he didn't know the answer. Usagi believed him somehow.

He then started walking. "C'mon, it's getting late. The pool will close soon anyway, and we're both too tired to try anything more anyway. I'll drive you home, and see you tomorrow, okay?" She nodded.

They changed back in their clothes, and Mamoru drove her home in his red sports car. When they arrived, he went to the front gate to chat with her for a little while longer.

"So, this is the place where you live?" he asked, looking at the house, his hand leisurely in his pockets.

"Yeah," she replied. "Not bad." He smiled.

"Not bad at all. I guess your room is that window with everything pink peeking out of it, right?" Usagi laughed, rolling her eyes.

"Yeah, it is. How did you know?" She asked sarcastically, a grin lingering on. He shrugged, smiling.

"A hunch," he said, turning to go and winking at her happily.

"So I'll see you tomorrow?" she asked. He turned just so he could see her and nodded.

"Same place, same time, the usual." She nodded.

"Okay. See you."

"Bye."

Usagi turned to open the yard door, as he suddenly stopped and turned again.

"Oh, and Usagi-chan?"

"Hm?" She looked at him questioningly.

"You really are an extraordinary girl. And when I'm serious, I never say anything I don't mean." Usagi smiled and nodded.

"Okay." She opened the yard door and hurried to the house entrance, Mamoru got in his car. Life went on as it were.

* * *

End of Chapter Two - 

Well, that's it! Hope you enjoyed it and that you're waiting impatiently for another chapter -smile-

Sabreen


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